China releases list of countries covered by unilateral visa exemption policies

• China has published an official list of 50 nations cleared for unilateral visa-free entry
• Ordinary passport holders can enter for up to 30 days for tourism, business, transit, or family visits
• The policy includes 35 European nations alongside select countries from Asia, the Americas, and Oceania

The Chinese National Immigration Administration, in coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has released an updated list of nations covered under its expanding unilateral visa exemption policies.

The measure allows qualifying passport holders to enter mainland China without a visa for short-term stays, part of a broader ongoing push by Beijing to revitalise international tourism and ease global business travel.

Under the current guidelines, citizens from 50 designated countries spanning Europe, Asia, the Americas, and Oceania can travel to China seamlessly, provided they hold ordinary passports.

Eligible travellers are permitted to stay in China for a maximum of 30 days for business, tourism, family visits, exchange visits, or direct transit.

The immigration administration explicitly notes that the stay duration is calculated starting from 00:00 (midnight) on the day following the date of entry.

The full list of countries whose citizens are eligible for the unilateral visa-free entry includes:

1. Andorra
2. Argentina
3. Australia
4. Austria
5. Bahrain
6. Belgium
7. Brazil
8. Brunei Darussalam
9. Bulgaria
10. Canada
11. Chile
12. Croatia
13. Cyprus
14. Denmark
15. Estonia
16. Finland
17. France
18. Germany
19. Greece
20. Hungary
21. Iceland
22. Ireland
23. Italy
24. Japan
25. Kuwait
26. Latvia
27. Liechtenstein
28. Luxembourg
29. Malta
30. Monaco
31. Montenegro
32. Netherlands
33. New Zealand
34. North Macedonia
35. Norway
36. Oman
37. Peru
38. Poland
39. Portugal
40. Romania
41. Russian Federation
42. Saudi Arabia
43. Slovakia
44. Slovenia
45. Spain
46. Sweden
47. Switzerland
48. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
49. Uruguay
50. Republic of Korea

China sentences former senior official to death

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Chinese authorities sentenced a former senior government official to death after convicting him of accepting more than 2.2 billion yuan, equivalent to about 325 million dollars, in bribes over three decades.

Yang Youlin, 69, was found guilty by a court in Changzhou, eastern China, following a lengthy corruption investigation linked to President Xi Jinping's ongoing anti-corruption campaign.

Prosecutors said Yang abused several public offices he held in Nanjing between 1993 and 2023 to obtain unlawful financial benefits.

According to the court, Yang accepted money and valuable gifts in exchange for helping individuals and companies secure engineering projects, land transactions and financing approvals.

He was also convicted of embezzlement, abuse of power and money laundering. The court ruled that his actions caused severe financial losses to the state and seriously undermined public interest.

Judges described the offences as exceptionally serious and said the scale of the corruption justified the death sentence.

List of countries that requires no visa to enter South Korea

Previously, Legit.ng reported that the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea have updated the entry frameworks for international travelers, detailing specific visa-free stay limits for global citizens.

Under South Korea's reciprocal visa-waiver agreements, ordinary passport holders from eligible jurisdictions can enter the country for short-term stays, including tourism, business meetings, and family visits, without obtaining a traditional consular visa

Proofreading by Funmilayo Aremu, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng